Knitted textiles with conductive traces of a hybrid yarn and methods of knitting the same

ABSTRACT

A textile made from a single knitted layer having an inert region and a conductive trace region is disclosed. The inert region is knitted using an electrically inert or non-externally conductive yarn and the conductive trace region is knitted from a hybrid yarn containing a non-conductive yarn twisted with a conductive wire, with the conductive wire having an exterior insulating layer. The conductive trace can transmit an electrical data or power signal along the textile via the conductive wire. The insulating layer of the wire can be removed in the conductive trace region to expose the conductive exterior of the wire to enable electrical connections to the conductive trace region. The textile can include a textile electrode knitted from an externally conductive yarn and the conductive trace region can be electrically connected to the electrode to transmit an electrical signal to or from the textile electrode.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/832,098 filed Apr. 10, 2019 and entitled GARMENTS WITH INTEGRATEDELECTRODES AND CONDUCTIVE TRACES; from U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/832,101 filed Apr. 10, 2019 and entitled SYSTEMS AND METHODS FORMAINTAINING MOISTURE IN A TEXTILE ELECTRODE; and from U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 62/832,104 filed Apr. 10, 2019 and entitled HYBRIDYARN FOR WEAVING CONDUCTIVE WIRES INTO FABRIC. The contents of U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/832,098, U.S. ProvisionalApplication Ser. No. 62/832,104, and U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/832,101 are hereby incorporated in their entireties by reference.

The subject matter of this patent application may be related to thesubject matter of U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ entitledSYSTEMS FOR MAINTAINING MOISTURE IN A TEXTILE ELECTRODE filed on evendate herewith and U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ entitledMACHINE-KNITTABLE CONDUCTIVE HYBRID YARNS. Each of these patentapplications is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

GOVERNMENT RIGHTS

This invention was made with Government support under Grant No.N00189-17-C-Z023 awarded by the U.S. Navy. The Government has certainrights in the invention.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to textiles with conductive traces and textileelectrodes integrated into a single-layer of fabric.

BACKGROUND

Medical electrodes typically comprise a metallic surface in closecontact with the skin, which is fixed on the skin by means of anadhesive, and the impedance between the skin and the metallic surface isreduced by the use of a conductive gel. More recently, garments havebeen designed that enable medical electrodes to be in contact with theskin while the garment is worn. The electrodes in the garments enablephysiological properties of the wearer of the garment to be monitoredover long periods of time (e.g., as long as the garment is worn). Thesephysiological properties include measurement of an electrocardiographicsignal, which is representative of the heart activity of a user whowears the garment. However, prior art garments with electrodes known tothe inventors have been unable to seamlessly integrate an electrode intothe fabric itself of the garment, and instead often require theelectrode to be separately made and then applied to the garment, ormultiple layers of fabric to support the electrode or have traditionalwires running through the garment from the electrodes that interferewith the movement and comfort of the garment.

SUMMARY

Certain embodiments of the present disclosure provide a garment withintegrated textile electrodes and conductive traces knitted into thegarment to connect the textile electrodes to a control unit attached tothe garment. Various embodiments include a textile, such as a wearablegarment, knitted as a single continuous layer from different types ofyarn, with a textile electrode formed as a region in the garment knittedwith conductive yarn, the textile electrode being configured to receivean electrical signal from the body and transmit that signal along theconductive trace.

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a textile made from asingle knitted layer having an inert region and a conductive traceregion knitted together to form a continuous textile section of thesingle knitted layer, where the inert region is knitted using anelectrically inert yarn and the conductive trace region is knitted froma hybrid yarn containing a non-conductive yarn twisted with a conductivewire, the conductive wire having an exterior layer of an insulatingmaterial. The conductive trace region can be configured to transmit anelectrical data or power signal along the single knitted layer via theconductive wire from a first location in the continuous textile sectionto a second location in the continuous textile section. The conductivewire of the conductive trace region between the first and secondlocations can include one or more continuous lengths of the conductivewire spanning the first and second locations. The conductive traceregion can be configured to transmit an electrical data or power signalalong the single knitted layer via the conductive wire from a firstregion of the conductive trace region where the coating has been removedfrom the conductive wire to a second region of the conductive traceregion where the coating has been removed from the conductive wire. Thesingle-layer can define a first surface and a second surface oppositethe first surface, and wherein a yarn of a given region of thesingle-layer is presented at both the first and second surfaces.

In some examples, the single knitted layer further includes an electroderegion knitted using a conductive yarn, the conductive yarn comprisingan exposed exterior surface of an electrically conductive material. Aportion of a boundary of the electrode region can be knitted togetherwith an adjacent portion of a boundary of the conductive trace region.In some embodiments, the exterior layer of the conductive wire of theconductive trace region adjacent to the electrode region is removed andthe conductive wire contacts the conductive yarn such that theconductive trace region is electrically connected with the electroderegion. In some embodiments, a second layer of the hybrid yarn isknitted of the conductive trace region of the continuous textile sectionand over a portion of the electrode region to form a two-layer sectionof the textile, and the exterior layer of the conductive wire of aportion of the conductive trace region in the two layer section isremoved to expose a portion of the conductive wire and the exposedportion of the conductive wire is electrically connected with theelectrode region via a conductive material. In some embodiments, thetextile includes a section of the hybrid yarn of the conductive traceregion extending out of the continuous textile section such that thesection of the hybrid yarn can extend across a portion of the electroderegion.

The hybrid yarn can include the non-conductive yarn twisted with twoseparate conductive wires each having an exterior separately coated withthe insulating material. The conductive wire of the hybrid yarn candefine a continuous length of conductive wire along each length ofhybrid yarn of the conductive trace region. In some embodiments, thenon-conductive yarn of the hybrid yarn includes at least one of anaramid, meta-aramid, or para-aramid polyamide fiber. The conductive wireof the hybrid yarn can include an exterior surface of a conductive metaland the insulating material comprises a polymer.

The single-layer can be knitted using a single-layer intarsia techniquehaving all regions of the single-layer in the same intarsia layer. Insome embodiments, the knitted textile is a garment and the inner surfaceof the single knit layer defines a skin-facing side of the garment andan outer surface of the single knit layer defines an exterior surface ofthe garment.

Yet another Embodiment of the present disclosure is a method of knittinga textile including knitting a single-layer of the textile from anelectrically inert yarn and a hybrid yarn to form a continuous textilesection by knitting the electrically inert yarn into an inert region ofthe single-layer and knitting the hybrid yarn into a conductive traceregion of the single-layer, wherein the hybrid yarn includes anon-conductive yarn twisted with a conductive wire, the conductive wirehaving an exterior coated with an insulating material. The conductivetrace region can be knitted to transmit an electrical data or powersignal along the single knitted layer via the conductive wire from afirst location in the continuous textile section to a second location inthe continuous textile section. The conductive wire of the conductivetrace region knitted between the first and second locations can includeone or more continuous lengths of the conductive wire spanning the firstand second locations.

In some embodiments, the method includes removing the coating of theconductive wire in a first region of the conductive trace region andremoving the coating of the conductive wire in a section region of theconductive trace region, where the first and second regions areconnected via a continuous section of the conductive trace region andthe continuous section of the conductive trace region is configured totransmit an electrical data or power signal along the continuous textilesection via the conductive wire from the first region to the secondregion. Removing the coating of the conductive wire in at least one ofthe first or second regions can include ablating the hybrid yarn toremove the non-conductive yarn and the coating on the conductive wire.

In some embodiments the method includes knitting the single-layer of thetextile with a conductive yarn, the conductive yarn being knit into anelectrode region of the continuous textile section, where the conductiveyarn includes an exposed exterior surface of an electrically conductivematerial. A portion of a boundary of the electrode region can be knittedtogether with an adjacent portion of a boundary of the conductive traceregion.

The method can further include removing the exterior layer of theconductive wire of the conductive trace region adjacent to the electroderegion such that the conductive wire contacts the conductive yarn andthe conductive trace region is electrically connected with the electroderegion.

The method can further include knitting a second layer of the hybridyarn out of the conductive trace region of the continuous textilesection and over a portion of the electrode region to form a two-layersection of the textile, removing the exterior layer of the conductivewire of a portion of the conductive trace region in the two layersection to expose a portion of the conductive wire, and electricallyconnect the exposed portion of the conductive wire with the electroderegion via a conductive adhesive. Removing the exterior layer of theconductive wire in the two layer section can include positioning aprotective material between the first layer and the second layer andablating the hybrid yarn in the second layer to remove thenon-conductive yarn and the coating on the conductive wire, with theprotective material preventing damage to the electrode region.

The method can further include extending a section of the hybrid yarn ofthe conductive trace region extending out of the continuous textilesection such that the section of the hybrid yarn can extend across aportion of the electrode region.

In some embodiments, the single-layer defines a first surface and asecond surface opposite the first surface, and wherein a yarn of a givenregion of the single-layer is presented at both the first and secondsurfaces.

In some embodiments, the hybrid yarn comprises the non-conductive yarntwisted with two separate conductive wires each having an exteriorseparately coated with the insulating material. The conductive wire ofthe hybrid yarn can define a continuous length of conductive wire alongeach length of hybrid yarn of the conductive trace region. Thenon-conductive yarn of the hybrid yarn can include at least one of anaramid, meta-aramid, or para-aramid polyamide fiber. The conductive wireof the hybrid yarn can include an exterior surface of a conductive metaland the insulating material comprises a polymer. The single-layer can beknitted using a single-layer intarsia technique having all regions ofthe single-layer in the same intarsia layer. In some embodiments, thesingle-layer is knitted using a single bed of a knitting machine. Insome embodiments, each yarn of the single-layer is knit separately. Insome embodiments, the textile is a garment and the inner surface of thesingle knit layer defines a skin-facing side of the garment and an outersurface of the single knit layer defines an exterior surface of thegarment.

Other, features, and advantages of the subject matter included hereinwill be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

This disclosure will be more fully understood from the followingdetailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1A is a schematic illustration of a single-layer textile formed asa wearable garment with integrated textile electrodes and conductivetraces connecting the electrodes to a controller unit configured inaccordance with illustrative embodiments;

FIG. 1B is a photograph of an illustrative embodiment of the textile ofFIG. 1A on a user;

FIGS. 1C to 1E are photographs of different views of the example textileof FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B on a mannequin;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic illustrations of a wearable garments withconductive traces and electrode regions formed therein;

FIG. 3A is a schematic illustration of an example twist pattern of ahybrid yarn having a conductive wire around a nonconductive yarn;

FIG. 3B is a schematic illustration of an intarsia knitting techniquefor three separate regions of a single textile layer using threedifferent yarns;

FIG. 4A is a schematic illustration of a flatbed knitting machine usingthe intarsia knitting technique for three separate regions of a singletextile layer using three different yarns;

FIG. 4B is a schematic illustration of a flatbed knitting machine usingthe intarsia technique for separating a loop of conductive hybrid yarnfrom the end of a conductive trace in accordance with illustrativeembodiments;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are front and back photographs of a single-layer textileproduced with the intarsia knitting technique having four distinctregions formed using a distinct yarn in each region;

FIG. 6A is a photograph of a continuous textile section knitted usingthe intarsia technique and having a conductive trace region passingthrough a plurality of distinct regions of the textile section;

FIG. 6B is a photograph of a continuous textile section knitted usingthe intarsia technique and having a conductive trace region passingthrough an inert region from a first location to a second location;

FIG. 6C is a schematic illustration of a single-layer of a continuoustextile section knitted having a conductive trace region passing throughan inert region and electrically connected to an electrode region of thetextile section;

to FIG. 6D is a schematic illustration is the continuous wires presentin the conductive trace region of FIG. 6B;

FIG. 7A is a photograph of an embodiment of a knitted textile havingconductive traces with loose ends of hybrid yarn extending from theconductive traces;

FIG. 7B is a photograph of the knitted textile of FIG. 7A with the looseends having their conductive wires soldered to a corresponding copperwire of a wire assembly;

FIG. 8 is a photograph of a conductive trace region adjacent to anelectrode region with a portion of the nonconductive fibers of thehybrid yarn of the conductive trace region having been removed usingablation to expose uninsulated portions of the conductive wire;

FIG. 9 is a photograph of a garment having conductive trace regionsextending to electrode regions with a conductive material being appliedto an ablated region of the conductive trace region adjacent to theelectrode region to electrically couple the wires of the conductivetrace region to the electrode region;

FIG. 10 is a photograph of an embodiment of a knitted textile having anintegrated electrode and a conductive trace with a loose loop of theconductive trace extending across the face of the integrated electroderegion;

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of a single-layer of a continuoustextile section knitted using the intarsia technique and having aconductive trace region passing through an inert region and across aface of an electrode region;

FIGS. 12A-12E are photographs of an embodiment of the steps for couplinga conductive trace region of a knitted textile to an integratedelectrode region of the knitted textile by ablating a portion of theconductive trace region that extends across the integrated electrode.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Certain exemplary embodiments will now be described to provide anoverall understanding of the principles of the structure, function,manufacture, and use of the devices and methods disclosed herein. One ormore examples of these embodiments are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Those skilled in the art will understand that the devices andmethods specifically described herein and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings are non-limiting exemplary embodiments and thatthe scope of the present disclosure is defined solely by the claims. Thefeatures illustrated or described in connection with one exemplaryembodiment may be combined with the features of other embodiments. Suchmodifications and variations are intended to be included within thescope of the present disclosure.

Example Textiles with Integrated Conductive Traces

FIG. 1A is a schematic illustration of a textile formed as a wearablegarment with integrated electrodes and conductive traces connecting theelectrodes to a controller unit configured in accordance withillustrative embodiments. Specifically, FIG. 1A schematically shows atextile garment 100 with integrated textile electrodes 130, andconductive traces 120 connecting the textile electrodes 130 to anelectrical device 199. The garment 100 is constructed as a singletextile layer to be worn directly against the skin. The garment 100 isknitted from a regular electrically inert material 110 (e.g., aninsulator material, such as cotton, wool, or polyester) with the textileelectrodes 130 knitted directly into the garment 100, without addingadditional textile layers at the location of the textile electrodes 130.The conductive traces 120 are knitted with a hybrid yarn, discussed inmore detail below, that is constructed from a strong and inelasticnonconductive yarn twisted with one or more conductive wires, with theconductive wires being coated with an insulating material. The hybridyarn enables the conductive traces 120 to transmit power or electricalsignals through the conductive wires without interference due to theinsulating coating on the conductive wires. The textile electrodes 130have an inner surface that is therefore positioned against the user'sskin when the garment 100 is worn. The textile electrodes 130 areknitted from a conductive yarn, such as a silver coated polyester, thatenables the textile electrodes 130 to conduct electrical signals acrossthe textile electrode 130. The textile electrodes 130 are connected tothe electrical device 199 via conductive traces 120 that are alsoknitted directly into the garment 100 without adding additional layersto the garment. In some embodiments, the garment 100 defines asingle-layer knitted textile layer across the inert material 110, thetextile electrodes 130, and the conductive traces 120. In someembodiments, the textile electrodes 130 are knitted as electricalconnection regions for a sensor or electronic device affixed to thegarment 100.

The textile electrodes 130 can be arranged to, for example, pick up orsense electrical signals from the user's body, such as those related toheart rate and heart function (e.g., the signals for use in forming anelectrocardiogram EKG). In some embodiments, the garment 100 includesfour textile electrodes 130, positioned with respect to the user's bodyin order to provide a high-quality EKG signal. The conductive traces 120connect the textile electrodes 130 to the electrical device 199 via theconductive wires integrated into the hybrid yarn from which theconductive traces 120 are knitted. The conductive wire of the hybridyarn can be coated with an insulating polymer, which is able to beremoved at the points of contact with the textile electrodes 130 and theelectrical device 199.

In some embodiments, the hybrid yarn is constructed from a highlyinelastic material, such as meta-aramid or para-aramid (e.g., Kevlar® orTwaron®) or a material with similar material properties to protect theintegrated conductive wires from damage or being severed during theknitting process and being damaged or severed during normal wear of thegarment 100, such as Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethene (UHMWPE),Polybenzimidazole (PBI), Polyphenylene Benzobisoxazole (PBO), HighStrength Polyester, Liquid-Crystal Polymer (LCP), or spider silk. Insome embodiments the hybrid yarn is made with a fire retardant andself-extinguishing material, such as para-aramid or material withsimilar properties according to the ASTM D6413/D6413M Standard VerticalTest Method for Flame Resistance of Textiles to enable the insulatinglayer and nonconductive yarn to be removed using ablation. Theconductive wire can be, for example copper wire or copper-cladstainless-steel sire. Additionally, the textile electrodes 130 may beknitted or otherwise constructed with a conductive wire, such as silveror copper wire or a nonconductive yarn (e.g., nylon, polyester, cotton,or wool) coated with a conductive material such as silver or copper. Insome embodiments, the standard material 110, textile electrodes 130, andconductive traces 120 are knitted together into a single-layer garment100 without seams.

FIG. 1B is a photograph of an illustrative embodiment of the textile ofgarment 100 FIG. 1A on a user. FIG. 1B shows patches 130′ over thetextile electrodes 130 that are arranged to maintain a moisture level inthe textile electrode 130. These patches 130′ can also be used to impartstability to the textile electrode on body when the garment is worn andto reduce electrical static noise from the outer surface of the textileelectrode 130. FIGS. 1C to 1E are photographs of different views of theexample textile garment 100 of FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B on a mannequin.

While the embodiments discussed above include textile garments, otherapplications are readily considered within the scope of the single-layertextiles described herein. For example, vehicle seating with integratedsensors, flexible textile cables with conductive traces to transmitpower or data through the textile cable, and straps or harnesses forsecuring devices or objects to the human body or to any other object.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic illustrations of a wearable garments 150,160 with conductive traces 120 and textile electrodes 130 formedtherein. FIG. 2A shows a garment textile 150 with two pairs of textileelectrode regions 130 each connected together by a conductive traceregion 120. FIG. 2B shows a garment textile 160 with three pairs oftextile electrode regions 130 each connected to a single centralelectrode region 139 via conductive trace regions. In operation, thegarment textile 160 can have a centralized sensor or control unit 199attached to the garment (e.g., in a pocket 140 knitted directly into thegarment textile 160) and electrically connected to each of the textileelectrode regions 130 by connecting directly with the single centralelectrode region 139. FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate that textileembodiments of the present disclosure can be hardware. In the case of agarment textile 150, 160 for example, the construction of the textilelayer can position the textile electrode regions 130 wherever either ofa sensing region or an electrical connection is desired (e.g., is,hardware can move into different locations of the body.

Example Single-Layer Textile Knitting Techniques

Weaving is believed to be the most popular method of fabric constructionused and has been known to mankind for over 3000 years. It involvesinterlacing yarns as a means to manufacture the fabrics. A wovenstructure has multiple yarns in warp (vertical) direction and one yarnin weft (horizontal) direction going from selvedge to selvedge (edge toedge). The yarns are interlaced at right angles to make a fabricstructure. Woven textiles tend to be more dimensionally stable thanknitted fabrics, having vertical threads interlaced with separatehorizontal threads. However, interlaced construction techniques do notallow the conductive traces 120 and textile electrodes 130 to beseamlessly integrated into the single-layer garment 100, as shown inFIGS. 1A-2B, because in weaving techniques, for example, a weft yarnmust always go from edge to edge (horizontally) and the warp yarns mustalways go from bottom to top (vertically). This means that any yarn,whether conductive or non-conductive, cannot change direction during theweaving process. For example, it is not possible for a woven weft yarn(horizontal) to change direction during weaving to in the warp direction(vertical). This means that for a conductive trace in the textile (e.g.,conductive traces 120 of FIG. 1A) to be connected within the textilestructure to an integrated textile electrodes (e.g., textile electrodes130 show in FIG. 1A) the entire area of the woven textile, from thestart of the conductive trace to the textile electrode, must be wovenwith the conductive yarns used to make the conductive trace.

In knitting, and particularly in flatbed weft knitting, it is possiblefor a yarn to change direction from weft to warp and back again (e.g.,horizontal to vertical and back). This means it is possible to knitconductive traces 120 connecting textile electrodes 130 within a singleknit textile layer with the shortest traces between two electrodes orbetween the conductive traces and an attached electrical device 199.Knitting, and specifically flatbed knitting, allows for the design oftextile electrical circuits (e.g., conductive traces 120 connectingtextile electrodes 130) with the shortest routes for the conductivetraces and the placement of the textile electrodes 130 in the textile asneeded for function. This is preferable as shorter conductive traceswill be more efficient for data and power transfer. It is physicallyimpossible to do the same thing in weaving.

While there are many knitting techniques that could be used to make atextile with the same shapes as the garments shown in FIGS. 1A-2B, aswell as having different regions, intarsia knitting is the only knittingtechnique that can be used to make a textile garment 100 with theconductive traces 120 and the textile electrodes 130 integrated into asingle continuous layer. Intarsia knitting can be achieved with circularweft knitting machines in a variation known as jacquard intarsia, but apreferred method is Intarsia using a flatbed knitting machine (such asthose manufactured by Stoll, Shima Seiki and others). In flatbedknitting a carriage moves from side to side engaging with needles on arectilinear knitting bed. Flatbed knitting can be achieved on a singleknitting bed, a V-bed in which two knitting beds are arranged at anangle to each other, or Four-bed in which four beds are arrangedopposing each other. The textile garment 100 of FIGS. 1B-1E were knittedusing the intarsia techniques on a flatbed machine.

FIG. 3A is a schematic illustration of an example twist pattern of ahybrid yarn 200 having a conductive wire 220 around a nonconductive yarn210. In order to knit the conductive traces 120 into a single-layerusing a flatbed knitting machine the nonconductive yarn 210 must protectconductive wire 220 from being broken by the stresses put on the hybridyarn 200 by the flatbed knitting machine. Accordingly, a hybrid yarn 200was developed that was suitable for flatbed knitting. The hybrid yarn200 is constructed from the nonconductive yarn 210 being twisted withthe conductive wire 220, where the nonconductive yarn 210 is a strongand inelastic yarn that, when exposed to the tensile forces of theflatbed knitting machine, exhibits an elongation of a sufficiently smallpercentage to prevent breakage of the conductive wire 220. For example,the nonconductive yarn 210 can have a tensile strength greater than thatof the conductive wire 220 as well as an elongation break percentageless than 5 or less than about 4.2. In other embodiments, thenonconductive yarn 210 may have a Young's modulus of 60 or greater. Inpractice, because the nonconductive yarn 210 and conductive wire 220 aretwisted together and the nonconductive yarn 210 comprises the majorityfraction of the overall cross-section of the hybrid yarn 200, thematerial of nonconductive yarn 210 need not simply be less elastic thanthe metal of conductive wire 220 because, as the hybrid yarn 200 isexposed to tensile forces, the hybrid yarn 200 acts as a singlestructure and the relative elasticity of the much larger nonconductiveyarn 210 section is less than the relative elasticity of the muchthinner conductive wire 220 as the hybrid yarn 200 undergoes tension.Accordingly, suitable embodiments of hybrid yarn 200 are constructedfrom very strong and inelastic fibers, such as meta-aramids andpara-aramids, that are both thin and flexible enough to be knitted on aflatbed machine, but also strong and inelastic enough at those thindiameters to be twisted with a substantially thinner metal wire (e.g., aconductive wire 220 thin enough to maintain the thin and flexibleproperties of the overall hybrid yarn 200 that enable it to be bothmachine knittable and not affect the worn feeling of a garment) andprevent the substantially thinner metal wire from breaking.

FIG. 3B is a schematic illustration of an intarsia knitting techniquefor three separate regions of a single textile layer using threedifferent yarns. FIG. 3B shows an inert region 110 knitted with an inertyarn 111, a conductive trace region 120 knitted with a hybrid yarn 200,and a textile electrode region 130 knitted with a conductive yarn 131.

FIG. 4A is a schematic illustration of a flatbed knitting machine 400using the intarsia knitting technique for three separate regions 110,120, 130 of a single textile layer using three different yarns. FIG. 4Ashows an inert yarn 111 being knitted alongside a hybrid yarn 200 and aconductive yarn 131. FIG. 4B is a schematic illustration of a flatbedknitting machine using the intarsia technique for separating a loop ofconductive hybrid yarn from the end of a conductive trace in accordancewith illustrative embodiments.

FIG. 4B shows the flatbed knitting machine 400 with 540 separate needleson the front bed and 540 needles on the back bed separating a loop ofconductive hybrid yarn 200 from the end of a conductive trace 120. Inthis example, once the conductive yarn is done knitting in its field, itcontinues to knit loosely on the back bed, every 10 needles or so, tohold down the loose tail of the yarn. The number of needles in use inthis example were 400. When the 400th needle completed knitting the laststitch, the knitting machine kept knitting beyond the 400th needle, sothat the yarn is held onto a single knitting needle that is beyond theknit area already completed. The number of empty needles between the400^(th) needle and the needle now holding the yarn can be any numberand is only limited by the number of needles in the knitting bed. Inthis embodiment the number of needles is 10. The knitting carriagereturns to the left-hand side of the knitting bed to complete the row inwhich the yarn was held outside the field of knitting. On the next row,the knitting carriage knits across the 400 needles and then travels tothe needle holding the yarn and casts off the active stitch on thatneedle so that it is left hanging free of the needle bed. This cast-offstitch forms a loose loop free of the knit textile itself, and knittingcontinues across the 400 needles. This method of making a loose loop 123can be used both at the end of a row of knitting whether at the edge ofa knit textile (as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B), or at the edge of anIntarsia field within the textile, such as being used to make multipleloose loops within the same textile (as shown in FIG. 6A).

FIGS. 5A and 5B are front and back photographs of a single-layer textileproduced with the intarsia knitting technique having four distinctregions formed using a distinct yarn in each region. In FIGS. 5A and 5Bindependent yarns 710-713 are knitted into a desired pattern on thefront of a textile. With the intarsia technique, the pattern of front ismirrored, without an inversion, on the opposite side. Specifically, eachknitted field is independent, and their yarns 710-712 do not mix exceptfor a single needle forming a loop stitch crossing 729 at the edges ofeach field. Unlike other multicolor techniques including Jacquard andFair Isle, there is only one “active” color on any given stitch, andyarn is not carried across the back of the work; when a color changes ona given row, the previously knit yarn is left hanging. The hanging yarnis then picked up and knit in as the knitting carriage returns on thenext row of knitting. This means that any intarsia piece generally istopologically several disjointed fields wherein each field can be knitwith a different yarn. Intarsia is typically used with colored yarns; asimple blue circle on a white background involves one field of blue andtwo of white—one for the left and one for the right—or in illustrativeembodiments: conductive and non-conductive yarn fields. This also meansthat textiles knitted with intarsia are lightweight and fluid because itis throughout only one fabric layer thick. In Fair Isle knitting,usually not more than two colors are used at once in a given row. Bothyarns are carried all the way across the row, using whichever color isappropriate in the front, and the other color is carried loosely behindthe worked stitches, creating a float or strand. Therefore, Fair Isletechnique creates bulkier and heavy garments. Fair Isle does not permitthe isolation of specific yarns within the garment, which is requiredthe single-layer textiles discussed above, and therefore is not suitablefor the construction textile such as a single-layer garment 100 withconductive traces 120 and textile electrodes 130 or any similarsingle-layer continuous knitted textile segment with conductive traces120 and textile electrodes 130. Accordingly, the intarsia technique iswell suited for constructing such a single-layer textile garment 100with electrodes 130 and conductive traces 120 knitted into specificregions with the inert regions 110.

Example Single-Layer Knitted Textile Constructs with Conductive Traces

FIG. 6A is a graphic rendering of a continuous textile section knittedusing the intarsia technique and having a conductive trace regionpassing through a plurality of distinct regions of the textile section.FIG. 6A shows multiple different yarns knitted into a single textileusing the intarsia technique. FIG. 6A shows a conductive trace 120knitted between a standard material 110 by way of knitting individualregions 180, 181, 182 around the conductive trace 120 in the standardmaterial 110 to form the bends of the conductive trace 120. Theconductive trace 120 terminates in loose loops 123 of hybrid yarn 200that can, for example, be used to emetically connect a sensor orelectronic device to the conductive trace 120. In some embodiments, theindividual regions 180, 181, 182 are knitted from the standard material110, and one or more of them could also be made from a differentmaterial, such as a conductive thread to form a textile electrode 130 incontact with the conductive trace 120.

FIG. 6B is a graphic rendering of a continuous textile section knittedusing the intarsia technique and having a conductive trace regionpassing through an inert region from a first location to a secondlocation. FIG. 6B is an example of the multi-region knitting of FIG. 6A,where all the regions 180, 181, 182 were knitted from the same materialas the rest of the garment outside of the conductive trace 120 (i.e.,the inert yarn 111). FIG. 6B shows a hybrid yarn knitted into aconductive trace 120 in an inert region 110 of a continuous textilesection that change direction and provides an electrical connectionbetween a first location (A) and a second location (B). This can, forexample, enables the control device 199 of FIG. 1A to be connected tothe conductive trace 120 at location (A) and provide an electricalconnection to a textile electrode 130 at location (B) via the conductivewires 220 in the conductive trace 120 that extend continuously between(A) to (B).

FIG. 6C is a schematic illustration of a single-layer 301 of acontinuous textile section 300 knitted to have a conductive trace region120 passing through an inert region 110, with the conductive traceregion 120 being electrically connected to a textile electrode region130 of the textile section 300 at an interface 129 between the tworegions. The single 301 defines a bottom side 305 and a top side 306opposite the bottom side, with each region 110, 120, 130 extendingbetween the top side 306 and the bottom side 305. Additionally, FIG. 6Cshows a seal or patch 130′positioned on the top side 306 of the textileelectrode region 130 as shown in FIG. 1B. FIG. 6D is a schematicillustration is the continuous wires 220 present in the conductive traceregion 120 of FIG. 6B that extending between location (A) and location(B);

FIG. 7A is a photograph of an embodiment of a knitted textile havingconductive traces 120 with loose ends of hybrid yarn 200 extending fromeach of the conductive traces 120 and FIG. 7B is a photograph of theknitted textile of FIG. 7A with the loose ends having their conductivewires 220 soldered 759 to a corresponding copper wire 759 of a wireassembly 750.

Examples of Connecting a Hybrid Conductive Yarn to a Textile Electrode

FIG. 8 is a photograph of a conductive trace region 120 adjacent to atextile electrode region 130 with a portion of the nonconductive fibers210 of the hybrid yarn 200 of the conductive trace region having beenremoved using ablation to expose uninsulated portions 220′ of theconductive wire, where the ablation also removed the coating on apolymer conductive wire 220.

FIG. 9 is a photograph of a garment having conductive trace regions 120extending through inert regions 110 to textile electrode regions 130with a conductive material 923 applied to an ablated region of theconductive trace region 120 extending over the textile electrode region130 to electrically couple (or improve the existing electricalconnection between) the wires 220 of the conductive trace region 120 tothe conductive yarn 131 of the textile electrode region 130.

FIG. 10 is a graphic rendering of an embodiment of a knitted textilehaving an integrated electrode region 130 and a conductive trace region120 with a loose loop 123 of hybrid yarn 200 from the conductive traceregion 120 extending across the face of the textile electrode region.The loop 123 can be cut into a tail in order to facilitate connectionbetween the textile electrode 130 and the conductive trace region 120 ofwhich the loop or tail is an extension of the same hybrid yarn 200. Theloose loop 123 can be used to electrically connect the conductive traceregion 120 to the textile electrode region 130 by removing theinsulating layer (and, in some embodiments, the nonconductive yarn) fromthe loop 123 and connecting the now-bare conductive wire 220 of the loop123 to the conductive yarn 131 of the electrode 130. Leaving this loop123 loose allows the loop 123 to be ablated, exposing the bareconductive wire 210, without destroying the textile 100, 120, 130. Insome embodiments, the loose loop 123 increases the surface area of theconductive wire 210 that can be connected to the textile electrode 130,as well as providing a free strand to more easily remove the insulatingcoating and nonconductive yarn 210.

FIG. 11 is a schematic illustration of a single-layer of a continuoustextile section 301 knitted using the intarsia technique and having aconductive trace region 120 passing through an inert region 110 andacross a face of an electrode region 130. The conductive trace region120 includes a knitted extension 121 that is knitted out of the singlelayer of the continuous textile section to form a second layer above thetextile electrode region 130. This knitted extensions 121 of theconductive trace region 120 can be electrically connected with thetextile electrode region 130 as discussed in FIGS. 12A-12E.

FIGS. 12A-12E are photographs of an embodiment of the steps for couplinga conductive trace region 120 of a knitted textile to an integratedtextile electrode region 130 of the knitted textile by ablating aknitted extension 121 of the conductive trace region 120 that extendsacross the integrated electrode. In FIG. 12A, the textile section 301 ofFIG. 11 is positioned below a laser ablation rig with a protectivestructure 1201 (e.g., a thin metal plate) disposed between the knittedextension 121 and the textile electrode region 130 to allow a portion ofthe knitted extension 121 to be ablated without damaging the textileelectrode region 130. FIG. 12B shows the bare conductive wire 220′exposed in the portion of the knitted extension 121 that was ablated. InFIG. 12C, a conductive adhesive or similar conductive material 123 hasbeen placed in and around the region of the knitted extension 121 withthe bare conductive wire 220′ to electrically connect the conductivewire 220 of the conductive trace region 120 with the textile electroderegion 130. In FIG. 12D, a sealing film 1360 has been placed around theconductive material 123 to protect it and seal it from the surroundingtextile layers 120, 130. In FIG. 13E, an outer sealing patch 1340 isplaced around the entire textile electrode region 130 to create amoisture barrier between the textile electrode region 130 and the restof the textile. In some instances, a reservoir material is also placedbetween the textile electrode region 130 and the outer sealing patch1340 to retain moisture in the textile electrode region 130 and maintainthe sensing performance of the textile electrode region 130 as thetextile remains against the skin.

The embodiments of the invention described above are intended to bemerely exemplary; numerous variations and modifications will be apparentto those skilled in the art. One skilled in the art will appreciatefurther features and advantages of the disclosure based on theabove-described embodiments. Such variations and modifications areintended to be within the scope of the present invention as defined byany of the appended claims. Accordingly, the disclosure is not to belimited by what has been particularly shown and described, except asindicated by the appended claims. All publications and references citedherein are expressly incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. A textile, comprising: a single knitted layercomprising an inert region and a conductive trace region knittedtogether to form a continuous textile section of the single knittedlayer, wherein the inert region is knitted using an electrically inertyarn, and wherein the conductive trace region is knitted from a hybridyarn containing a non-conductive yarn twisted with a conductive wire,the conductive wire having an exterior layer of an insulating material.2. The textile of claim 1, wherein the conductive trace region isconfigured to transmit an electrical data or power signal along thesingle knitted layer via the conductive wire from a first location inthe continuous textile section to a second location in the continuoustextile section.
 3. The textile of claim 2, wherein the conductive wireof the conductive trace region between the first and second locationscomprises one or more continuous lengths of the conductive wire spanningthe first and second locations.
 4. The textile of claim 2, wherein theconductive trace region is configured to transmit an electrical data orpower signal along the single knitted layer via the conductive wire froma first region of the conductive trace region where the exterior layerhas been removed from the conductive wire to a second region of theconductive trace region where the exterior layer has been removed fromthe conductive wire.
 5. The textile of claim 1, wherein the singleknitted layer further comprises an electrode region knitted using aconductive yarn, the conductive yarn comprising an exposed exteriorsurface of an electrically conductive material.
 6. The textile of claim5, wherein a portion of a boundary of the electrode region is knittedtogether with an adjacent portion of a boundary of the conductive traceregion.
 7. The textile of claim 6, wherein the exterior layer of theconductive wire of the conductive trace region adjacent to the electroderegion is removed and the conductive wire contacts the conductive yarnsuch that the conductive trace region is electrically connected with theelectrode region.
 8. The textile of claim 5, wherein a second layer ofthe hybrid yarn is knitted of the conductive trace region of thecontinuous textile section and over a portion of the electrode region toform a two-layer section of the textile, and wherein the exterior layerof the conductive wire of a portion of the conductive trace region inthe two layer section is removed to expose a portion of the conductivewire and the exposed portion of the conductive wire is electricallyconnected with the electrode region via a conductive material.
 9. Thetextile of claim 5, comprising a section of the hybrid yarn of theconductive trace region extending out of the continuous textile sectionsuch that the section of the hybrid yarn can extend across a portion ofthe electrode region.
 10. The textile of claim 1, wherein thesingle-layer defines a first surface and a second surface opposite thefirst surface, and wherein a yarn of a given region of the single-layeris presented at both the first and second surfaces.
 11. The textile ofclaim 1, wherein the hybrid yarn comprises the non-conductive yarntwisted with two separate conductive wires each having an exterior layerof the insulating material.
 12. The textile of claim 1, wherein theconductive wire of the hybrid yarn defines a continuous length ofconductive wire along each length of hybrid yarn of the conductive traceregion.
 13. The textile of claim 1, wherein the non-conductive yarn ofthe hybrid yarn comprises at least one of an aramid, meta-aramid, orpara-aramid polyamide fiber.
 14. The textile of claim 1, wherein theconductive wire of the hybrid yarn comprises an exterior surface of aconductive metal and the insulating material comprises a polymer. 15.The textile of claim 1, wherein the single-layer is knitted using asingle-layer intarsia technique having all regions in the single-layer.16. The textile of claim 1, wherein the knitted textile is a garment andthe inner surface of the single knit layer defines a skin-facing side ofthe garment and an outer surface of the single knit layer defines anexterior surface of the garment.
 17. A method of knitting a textile, themethod comprising: knitting a single-layer of the textile from anelectrically inert yarn and a hybrid yarn to form a continuous textilesection by: knitting the electrically inert yarn into an inert region ofthe single-layer, and knitting the hybrid yarn into a conductive traceregion of the single-layer, wherein the hybrid yarn comprises anon-conductive yarn twisted with a conductive wire, the conductive wirehaving an exterior layer of an insulating material.
 18. The method ofclaim 17, wherein the conductive trace region is knitted to transmit anelectrical data or power signal along the single knitted layer via theconductive wire from a first location in the continuous textile sectionto a second location in the continuous textile section.
 19. The methodof claim 18, wherein the conductive wire of the conductive trace regionknitted between the first and second locations comprises one or morecontinuous lengths of the conductive wire spanning the first and secondlocations.
 20. The method of claim 17, further comprising: removing theexterior layer of the conductive wire in a first region of theconductive trace region, and removing the exterior layer the conductivewire in a section region of the conductive trace region, wherein thefirst and second regions are connected via a continuous section of theconductive trace region, and wherein the continuous section of theconductive trace region is configured to transmit an electrical data orpower signal along the continuous textile section via the conductivewire from the first region to the second region.
 21. The method of claim20, wherein removing the exterior layer of the conductive wire in atleast one of the first or second regions comprises ablating the hybridyarn to remove the non-conductive yarn and the exterior layer on theconductive wire.
 22. The method of claim 17, further comprising:knitting the single-layer of the textile with a conductive yarn, theconductive yarn being knit into an electrode region of the continuoustextile section, wherein the conductive yarn comprises an exposedexterior surface of an electrically conductive material.
 23. The methodof claim 22, wherein a portion of a boundary of the electrode region isknitted together with an adjacent portion of a boundary of theconductive trace region.
 24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:removing the exterior layer of the conductive wire of the conductivetrace region adjacent to the electrode region such that the conductivewire contacts the conductive yarn and the conductive trace region iselectrically connected with the electrode region.
 25. The method ofclaim 22, further comprising: knitting a second layer of the hybrid yarnout of the conductive trace region of the continuous textile section andover a portion of the electrode region to form a two-layer section ofthe textile, removing the exterior layer of the conductive wire of aportion of the conductive trace region in the two layer section isremoved to expose a portion of the conductive wire, and electricallyconnecting the exposed portion of the conductive wire with the electroderegion via a conductive adhesive.
 26. The method of claim 25, whereinremoving the exterior layer of the conductive wire in the two layersection comprises: positioning a protective material between the firstlayer and the second layer, and ablating the hybrid yarn in the secondlayer to remove the non-conductive yarn and the exterior layer on theconductive wire, the protective material preventing ablation of theelectrode region.
 27. The method of claim 17, further comprising:extending a section of the hybrid yarn of the conductive trace regionextending out of the continuous textile section such that the section ofthe hybrid yarn can extend across a portion of the electrode region. 28.The method of claim 17, wherein the single-layer defines a first surfaceand a second surface opposite the first surface, and wherein a yarn of agiven region of the single-layer is presented at both the first andsecond surfaces.
 29. The method of claim 17, wherein the hybrid yarncomprises the non-conductive yarn twisted with two separate conductivewires each having an exterior layer of the insulating material.
 30. Themethod of claim 17, wherein the conductive wire of the hybrid yarndefines a continuous length of conductive wire along each length ofhybrid yarn of the conductive trace region.
 31. The method of claim 17,wherein the non-conductive yarn of the hybrid yarn comprises at leastone of an aramid, meta-aramid, or para-aramid polyamide fiber.
 32. Themethod of claim 17, wherein the conductive wire of the hybrid yarncomprises an exterior surface of a conductive metal and the insulatingmaterial comprises a polymer.
 33. The method of claim 17, wherein thesingle-layer is knitted using a single-layer intarsia technique havingall regions of the single-layer in the same intarsia layer.
 34. Themethod of claim 33, wherein the single-layer is knitted using a singlebed of a knitting machine.
 35. The method of claim 33, wherein each yarnof the single-layer is knit separately.
 36. The method of claim 17,wherein the textile is a garment and the inner surface of the singleknit layer defines a skin-facing side of the garment and an outersurface of the single knit layer defines an exterior surface of thegarment.